A Guide to the Principles of Animal Nutrition

Reviewed by Ali Hussein, Assistant Professor, Eastern New Mexico University on 10/29/21

Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less

This chapter discusses all the necessary information about basic animal nutrition and how nutrients are important for normal body function. The information in the book matches what Land-Grant Universities cover in their Principles of Animal Nutrition classes.

Chapters are concise and have useful diagrams. However, there are some chapters such as the one on Lipid Digestion that require visuals and diagrams to complement the text.

Content Accuracy rating: 5

As an animal nutritionist, I agree that the information described in the book is scientifically accurate.

Relevance/Longevity rating: 5

The concepts discussed are still the same and not violated by modern research results.

Clarity rating: 5

The chapters are shorter than I expected for a textbook but the information is described in a clear and concise way. In cases like this, less is more because students do not have time to read long chapters with excess filler information.

Consistency rating: 5

Terms are clearly defined in earlier chapters. If the reader looks at the beginning chapters first, they will be able to understand the latter chapters.

Modularity rating: 3

I gave a 3 just because of the question being asked. I do not believe the module organization method is appropriate for classes like this. Every topic is different and does not need to be discussed in a certain order.

Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5

After talking about the anatomical differences between ruminant animals and non-ruminants, every other topic is different and does not need to be discussed in a certain order.

Interface rating: 5

I did not have interface issues during my review.

Grammatical Errors rating: 5

There were no obvious grammatical errors in the text. Other people might get overly picky about the use of commas or semicolons.

Cultural Relevance rating: 4

The only reason I gave a 4 is because this topic talks a lot about science and students who lack the background might feel overwhelmed and panicked. Many students who study agriculture get upset that they have to learn science even though it is necessary for their college education. This issue is not the fault of the textbook writer.

Comments

I would be very happy to adopt this book in my Principles of Nutrition class in the future. I was very pleased to see that the topics covered were almost a 100% match to what I have been teaching.